Welcome to 2007

Each year I send out my year-end reflective exercise to clients, colleagues and friends. This reflective process helps you to pause, look at what you’ve accomplished—or not-- and guide you positively into the new year. Briefly, this exercise consists of 4 steps:

• Look over your past year and capture your wins, successes, losses and disappointments
• Ask yourself what were the 5-7 lessons you have learned? What do you want to carry over to the new year? What do you want to let go?
• Imagine one year ahead, and write a list of all the wins, successes and breakthroughs for the coming year. What would you like to learn or accomplish by the end of the next year? Write this list as though it has already happened. Make it as long as you choose, and be sure to look at each area of your life.
• Name your year. This is the most important step of all. My name for 2007 is New Beginnings; what’s yours? Send me your named year and I will hold this for you and contact you to see how well it has worked for you.
  

Click Here to Explore the Steps

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What is coaching all about?
Before anyone can help you understand where you want to go and how you want to get there, you must make — and honor — a commitment to change

The longer I live, the more I understand how anything in life I want to do well requires that I make and keep a commitment through smooth and rocky times. Nurturing a career, cultivating a healthy marriage or partnership, raising children who respect themselves and others, caring for other people compassionately — all these things require a self affirmation of ongoing importance.

Coaching is like that, too. Fundamentally, a successful coaching experience can only begin when you make a conscious decision to change for the better, embrace the idea of change and stick with the idea and process even when change seems slow to come. That’s a decision you must make on your own. It’s taken me years to understand that if a person comes to me for coaching and he or she isn’t really interested in meaningful change, it’s best for both of us if I decline to take the person as a client. Why? Your commitment to positive change is a thousand times more important than any insight I can offer into how to define and achieve that change.

Once you’ve made the commitment to change for the better, coaching can be successful for both you and the coach only if both of you truly understand what coaching is not. Coaching is not about the coach instead, it is...

Offering her ideas on your life. It’s about helping you reach the point where you’re able to come up with your own ideas based on personal insight that results from thinking and talking and listening to what’s going on around you and what’s happening in your head and heart.

Taking your ideas and improving upon them. I see this happen frequently with business leaders. They solicit ideas from their direct reports, remark, “That’s a great idea, but why don’t we…” and suddenly the idea becomes the boss’s. How committed and enthusiastic will your people be to you and your organization if they know that whatever suggestions they make will be modified to fit your agenda? (This example applies with your spouse, partner and children as well!)

My goal as a coach is to listen to and offer insight about what you’re saying, how you’re saying it and how it’s manifesting itself in the way you look and feel about yourself and others.

Here is one example of how Reach The Top has helped people identify and achieve “the next step” through a committed coaching relationship:

Rebecca Lamperski, who recently published her first book Full Bloom, is on the road to becoming a keynote speaker and vying for Toastmaster’s International recognition. Our goal when we started our coaching relationship 18 months ago was for Rebecca to outgrow me and move on to bigger and better achievements. Here are Rebecca’s thoughts:

“Two weeks after being promoted to Director of Sales at age 32, I found myself in my boss's office informing him that I was pregnant with my first child. Five years later, I had two children, and was promoted two more times. But, I wasn’t happy. I realized that another five years was going to fly by, and I would be right where life had taken me - unless I took control. That’s when I received an invitation to a workshop featuring Donna Billings – Leadership trainer and coach. I couldn’t attend the training, but something caught my eye, so I visited Donna’s website. The website spoke to me. I needed Donna’s help! I wanted a life in “Full Bloom” and through Donna’s coaching and accountability – I have it!

My book is now published, I am getting speaking engagements – and I am helping others through my book and motivational speaking to achieve their life dreams as well! Here’s to your life in Full Bloom!”

Are you committed to making a positive change in your life? As a coach, I can help you take the next step
Don’t wait for someone else to make your life great! Make a commitment to change for the better — then let me help you discern what you know to be true about your career and personal life. Please contact me at donna@reachthetop.net.

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As we approach the New Year, why not make it your resolution to resist the temptation so many of us have to disregard someone else’s idea or reshape it into our own? The next time you solicit ideas from your direct reports, family members or friends, make a decision to close your mouth and open your ears. Truly listen to what’s being said — not only the person’s words, but also his or her tone. You may be amazed at the enthusiasm, level of commitment and inspiration people feel when they see their ideas in action.

Commitment is one of the most important aspects of our success and happiness as human beings. But don’t take my word for it…

“I know the price of success: dedication, hard work and an unremitting devotion to the things you want to see happen.”

Frank Lloyd Wright, architect

“If your energy is as boundless as your ambition, total commitment may be a way of life you should seriously consider.”

Dr. Joyce Brothers, psychologist and author

“The relationship between commitment and doubt is by no means an antagonistic one. Commitment is healthiest when it is not without doubt but in spite of it.”

Rollo May, existential psychologist and author of Love and Will

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Rebecca Lamperski, Full Bloom Planting the seeds for your future, 2006. www.fullbloomppc.com

Bonnie Thurston, To Everything a Season A Spirituality of Time, 1999. ISBN 0-8245-1784-9.

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Embrace a new leadership role. Inspire and motivate your people. Transition into a new career. Shift into a meaningful retirement. Our goal at Reach the Top is to help you design and implement the next stage of your life successfully and joyously!

Donna Billings, Founder and PCC

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